


It's a New Day, It's a New Life

by AstralDragons



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, Moving On, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn, Texting, and I'll be calling her 'Sheena', basing my headcanons for Mystery Girl on the info Lauren Zuke's dropped, smoking tw, so that means
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-22
Updated: 2019-01-22
Packaged: 2019-10-14 11:27:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17507723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AstralDragons/pseuds/AstralDragons
Summary: Pearl finally has a phone of her own, so she can finally message "S.", the mystery girl from the party in Ocean Town. Problem is, it's going to be more than a little difficult to find common ground between a millennia-old war veteran gem and a middle-aged human woman... and it might be harder to move on from Rose than Pearl is willing to admit.(The timespan is rather ambiguous in this fic, but please note that it'll contain spoilers for season five if you aren't caught up!)





	It's a New Day, It's a New Life

A gentle breeze slips in from the open window, softly ruffling the curtains as it sighs into the Temple. It’s a gorgeous evening, the setting sun the color of molten metal. The ocean waves rumble along the shore outside, almost drowning out the playful yells, hoots, and hollers coming from the sand below the Temple.

Evenings like this were usually Pearl’s favorite thing on Earth, but at the moment, she is neither relaxed nor as prim or proper as usual-- she’s perched on the kitchen counter in a tense position, her knees drawn up to her chest.

 

Pearl bites her lip in frustration, her brows furrowing.

She scowls at the unfamiliar piece of technology in her hands-- she knows that it isn’t sentient, of course, but for stars’ sake, she is thousands of years old. She’s been in countless battles throughout the years, so why is she hesitating? She’s supposed to be bold and precise, the most fearsome Pearl in gem history, but…

 

“Mmgh,” Pearl groans, running a free hand through her hair. She stares at the shiny, new contraption in her hands with a hint of irritation and defeat.

 

‘Smart’ phone: one. Pearl: zero.

 

The screen door slams open with a loud bang, causing Pearl to yelp and nearly drop the phone in her hand. Her head turns sharply, pointing an almost  _ offended _ look towards the source of the noise. However, she soon relaxes her shoulders at the sight of a familiar, grinning face.

“Pearl! C’mon, you gotta come see this cool trick Peri and Lapis figured out! Peri can actually pull the metals from the dirt in the water, and--”

Steven blinks, his excited rambling finally catching up to the sight before him. Pearl quickly straightens up her posture, but her hair is still mussed, the evidence of her frustrations still quite visible.

 

Steven quirks a brow, marching up to the counter and hopping up beside Pearl.

“What’re you doing?”

 

Pearl purses her lips, a faint tinge of blue coloring her pale cheeks. “I-I’m… Well. Greg heard that I didn’t have a phone, and…”

 

As she trails off, her gaze shifts to the slip of paper resting on the counter beside her. Steven blinks and glances down curiously, his eyes suddenly brightening at the sight of the scrap.

“That’s the mystery girl’s number, right? You’re trying to contact her!”

 

Pearl winces at Steven’s burst of enthusiasm, her blush darkening in hue.

“I’m… Well, yes, but…”

She takes a deep breath before shooting a worried look at the phone.

“I’ve never… texted before. Connie told me that this is how most humans communicate these days, but I’m… I’m not sure what I’m doing.”

 

Steven claps his hands to his cheeks, a grin spreading on his face.

“Pearl, why didn’t you say so earlier? I can help you text her, and Connie can help, too! Maybe not tonight-- she mentioned that she has to have dinner with her grandparents later-- but we can totally help!”

 

Pearl opens her mouth in protest before faltering. 

She’d never texted before, and she didn’t have much experience with talking to normal humans, aside from Connie… 

“It would be much appreciated,” Pearl admits quietly, fidgeting as she grasps the phone in her hands. “I just… I don’t know what I should say, Steven.”

“Wellllll,” he drawls, shooting her a lopsided grin, “just start by saying ‘hello’! Let her know that you’re from the party in Ocean Town and that she’s the one who gave you her number. That should be a good place to start!”

Pearl takes a deep breath, turning her gaze back to the cellphone. She uncertainly taps on the ‘message’ icon, entering the number from the slip of paper as delicately as though she were entering the nuclear launch codes.

  
  


_ Message History with (301)-555-0189 _

 

_ (17:03) Hello. My name is Pearl. I am from the party in Ocean City-- you gave your phone number to me a while ago, but I now own a cellphone so that I may text you. _

_ (17:03) How do you do? _

 

Pearl anxiously clicks her tongue before glancing down at Steven.  “Now what do I do?”

Steven grins and nudges Pearl with his elbow, a beaming look in his eyes. 

“Well, you just gotta wait and see what she says!”

 

Pearl frowns at the cellphone’s screen, idly chewing on her lip. 

“Right, of course. Just have to wait…” After a moment of pause, she blinks before showing the screen to Steven.

“What does this mean? The moving dots along the bottom?”

 

Steven’s brows shoot up, first in surprise before shifting into an expression of delight. “It means that she’s texting back, Pearl! She saw your message!”

Pearl stiffens up, her eyes widening with equal parts anticipation and anxiety.

 

(17:08) Oh hey, was wondering when you’d text!

(17:08) Sorry haha, assumed you’d have a phone

(17:09) I’m doin k, hbu?

 

Pearl tentatively pokes at her bottom lip with a single, slender fingertip, her anxious look shifting into confusion.

“Steven, what does this mean? ‘Doink’? ‘H-B-U’?”

Steven hastily reaches for the cellphone, peering at the messages.

“Oh, oh!” he chirps, pushing the phone back into Pearl’s hands. “She says she’s ‘doing k’, which means she’s doing okay! And H-B-U means ‘how about you’!”

 

Pearl tilts her head slightly at that, her brows knitting together.  “Why is she using this code? Is this standard texting protocol?”

Steven shrugs. “A lot of people shorten words like that so they can type their messages faster.”

“Ah,” Pearl hums quietly, resuming chewing on her lip. “I… see. Thank you.”

“No prob. Now text her back, come on!”

 

_ (17:11) I am doing well; thank you for asking! _

_ (17:11) Steven is teaching me how to text and decipher texting slang. _

 

(17:12) Oh cool

(17:12) Who’s Steven?

 

_ (17:14) He was with me at the party-- did you see him? He is my charge of sorts, to shorten a lengthy story. _

 

(17:15) Oh yeeah, that cute kid and the shorter gal with purple hair, right?

 

_ (17:16) Correct. That was Steven, and the one with purple hair is Amethyst. _

 

(17:16) Coolio, so he’s like ur kid?

(17:16) That’s really sweet that he’s teachin ya how to text

(17:17) How old are ya anyway???

 

_ (17:17) I suppose, yes. He is the result of the Crystal Gems’ leader, Rose Quartz, committing union with a human man. As Rose is gone now, myself and the other gems are in charge of raising Steven. _

_ (17:18) And it’s difficult to measure by Earth years, but I believe I am at least seven-thousand years of age. _

 

(17:20) Hah, I missed ur sense of humor, cool of u to raise ur friend’s kid, tho!

(17:20) I’m 32 <3

(17:20) I feel a lot less conscious about my age now tho, hearing that you’re thousands of years old LOL

 

_ (17:23) Oh! I am happy that I have made you ‘laugh out loud’. Yes, you are quite young, even by human standards! _

_ (17:24) By the way, you marked your name on this paper as “S.”... Is that your name? _

 

(17:24) Oh yeah, sorry bout that

(17:24) Forgot to introduce myself! Name’s Sheena

 

_ (17:27) Sheena is a beautiful name. _

_ (17:27) I quite like it. _

_ (17:28) <3 _

 

(17:28) Thanks, P. Your name ain’t half bad either!!

 

(17:35) Hey, I gotta run, but I’ll ttyl?

 

_ (17:35) I would be delighted to ‘TTYL’. In the meantime, be well! _

 

(17:36) Sure thing, Pearl. U too! :D

 

Pearl slowly inhales, one hand softly resting against her collarbone. 

“Well, that was… exhilarating. Do you think I did alright, Steven?”

 

Steven laughs and claps Pearl on the back, a proud smile on his face. “Are you kidding? You were amazing! She wants to text you more when she’s not busy!” His arms wrap around her waist in a tight hug. “Pearl, you’re a natural!”

“A natural--? Steven, you give me far too much credit.” Pearl softly laughs, bringing her arm around him in a side-hug. “Thank you for your help… I’ll likely need it again when she eventually ‘talks to me later’.”

Steven hums. “I’ve gotcha covered, Pearl! You’re gonna be texting like a pro soon enough.”

“Mm. I certainly hope so.” Pearl snorts quietly before gently clapping Steven on the back and stepping down to the kitchen floor. “Now, what were you saying earlier, about Lapis and Peridot learning a new trick…?”

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly I haven't written in months due to writer's block, but that season five finale though!!!!!! Aaaa it sparked my creative passion up again <3  
> Please drop a kudo and/or a comment if you enjoy what you see so far! I'm still a bit rusty, getting back into the writing game, so every bit of support would mean the world to me.
> 
> Thank you for reading!


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